Delhi records highest 8,593 new cases; CM anticipates worsening of situation

New Delhi: The third wave of coronavirus is turning out to be menacing in Delhi. On Wednesday, the daily new cases crossed the 8,000 mark for the first time, setting a new record since the pandemic hit the city. Delhi on Wednesday reported 8,593 new cases, taking the cumulative tally to 4,59,975. 

On Tuesday as well, the national capital had recorded the highest single-day spike at the time with 7,830 new cases. On Sunday, the third highest single-day spike was registered with 7,745 new cases.

The number of new cases reported came out of 64,121 tests conducted on the previous day. Of which, 19,304 were RTPCR/CBNAAT/TrueNat tests and 44,817 were rapid antigen tests. The positivity rate was 13.40 per cent.

The death figures have also been on a higher side in the last few days. 85 patients died from coronavirus in the last 24 hours, which was the second highest recorded in the city so far. The highest daily 93 deaths were recorded on June 16. Now, the death toll has reached 7,228 in the national capital. 

83 deaths were recorded on Tuesday, 71 on Monday, 77 on Sunday, 79 on Saturday, 64 on Friday and 66 on Thursday.
7,264 patients recovered from the deadly disease, taking the total recovery figure to 4,10,118 in the national capital. The recovery rate was 89.16 per cent.

The new cases outnumbered the recoveries by a significant margin on Wednesday. Active cases increased by 1,244 in the last 24 hours. Delhi has now 42,629 active cases. 

A total of 24,435 patients are in home isolation in the national capital. Out of the total 16,511 beds at the Covid hospitals, 8,014 are vacant.

Amid all this, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has requested the Union government to make arrangements of 1,092 beds, including 300 ICU beds to address the rising coronavirus cases in the city. 

In a letter written to Union health Minister Harsh Bardhan, he stated that the national capital will need 20,604 beds to tackle the upsurge in coronavirus cases. Taking reference from an expert group report, he said that daily coronavirus cases are expected to climb up to nearly 12,000 per day by the end of November.